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These are difficult stories. We bear witness in this chapter to the role of sport in furthering the settler colonial projects throughout Turtle Island. Here are some supports to access in the community and from a distance:
First Peoples House of Learning Cultural Support & Counselling
Niijkiwendidaa Anishnaabekwag Services Circle (Counselling & Healing Services for Indigenous Women & their Families) – 1-800-663-2696
Nogojiwanong Friendship Centre (705) 775-0387
Peterborough Community Counselling Resource Centre: (705) 742-4258
Hope for Wellness – Indigenous help line (online chat also available) – 1-855-242-3310
LGBT Youthline: askus@youthline.ca or text (647)694-4275
National Indian Residential School Crisis Line – 1-866-925-4419
Talk4Healing (a culturally-grounded helpline for Indigenous women):1-855-5544-HEAL
Section One: History
A) The Residential School System
Exercise 1: Notebook Prompt
We are asked to honour these stories with open hearts and open minds.
Which part of the chapter stood out to you? What were your feelings as you read it? (50 words)
| The part about girls not playing any contact sports stood out to me. It was interesting that every comment about what the girls did including walks and calisthenics stated that they were enthusiastic or that they loved it. I bet that lots of the girls would’ve enjoyed playing actual contact and team sports.
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B) Keywords
Exercise 2: Notebook Prompt
Briefly define (point form is fine) one of the keywords in the padlet (may be one that you added yourself).
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Muscular Christianity is the idea of strengthening your body in the name of Christianity. The idea that a fit body was beneficial for doing good in the world and for being a follower of Jesus. One of the strategies for working on your physicality was through sports which would in turn build character through learning sportsmanship, resilience, and fair play.
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C) Settler Colonialism
Exercise 3: Complete the Activities
Exercise 4: Notebook Prompt
Although we have discussed in this module how the colonial project sought to suppress Indigenous cultures, it is important to note that it also appropriates and adapts Indigenous cultures and “body movement practices” (75) as part of a larger endeavour to “make settlers Indigenous” (75).
What does this look like? (write 2 or 3 sentences)
| Firstly, this requires the removal of the actual indigenous peoples in the area either through extermination or displacement. Part of the erasure includes the control of Indigenous body movement as well as display, basically what they do and their appearance. Then it requires the new settler group to be of a single national entity.
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D) The Colonial Archive
Exercise 5: Complete the Activities
Section Two: Reconciliation
A) Reconciliation?
Exercise 6: Activity and Notebook Prompt
Visit the story called “The Skate” for an in-depth exploration of sport in the residential school system. At the bottom of the page you will see four questions to which you may respond by tweet, facebook message, or email:
How much freedom did you have to play as a child?
What values do we learn from different sports and games?
When residential staff took photos, what impression did they try to create?
Answer one of these questions (drawing on what you have learned in section one of this module or prior reading) and record it in your Notebook.
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B) Redefining Sport
B) Sport as Medicine
Exercise 7: Notebook Prompt
Make note of the many ways sport is considered medicine by the people interviewed in this video.
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C) Sport For development
Exercise 7: Notebook Prompt
What does Waneek Horn-Miller mean when she says that the government is “trying but still approaching Indigenous sport development in a very colonial way”?
| They are trying to improve the situation but are doing it themselves, instead of working with indigenous people to understand what steps should be taken for improvement. Without this different perspective they won’t understand what specifically needs to change and would just be making assumptions about these issues. They instead are taking control of the situation and isolating the Indigenous people from the problem solving part of this process, when they are the most effective in these steps towards change. |
Exercise 8: Padlet Prompt
Add an image or brief comment reflecting some of “binding cultural symbols that constitute Canadian hockey discourse in Canada.” Record your responses in your Notebook as well.
This image shows that hockey is about teamwork and the relationships you build on the ice with your teammates and even opponents. It’s about bringing people together even as fans and all enjoying the game whether you’re on or off the ice.
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Section Three: Decolonization
Please see the major assignment for this half of the term in the final section of this chapter.
Longer Prompt (5%):
Read the TRC’s 94 Calls to Action specific to sport again. Choose one of the Calls to Action that have been answered in full or in part and in 300 words explain the steps that have been taken to fulfill them and provide specific examples of what this looks like. Also reflect on how communities and individuals (particularly settlers) can contribute to addressing these Calls to Action.
- We call upon the officials and host countries of international sporting events such as the Olympics, Pan Am, and Commonwealth games to ensure that Indigenous peoples’ territorial protocols are respected, and local Indigenous communities are engaged in all aspects of planning and participating in such events.
For the 91st call to action by the TRC, there have been decently sized budget investments towards Indigenous sport leadership, culturally relevant sport programming, and the hosting of the North American Indigenous Games (Government, 2023). There has also been money put towards increasing the capacity of Provincial and Territorial Aboriginal Sports Bodies (PTASBs) (Government, 2023). These investments will help increase the volume of potential indigenous participants in sports as well as support the preparation and travel for the North American Indigenous team (Government, 2023). There is also investment going into the addition of lacrosse to the 2025 Canadian summer games in Newfoundland and Labrador to increase Indigenous participation (Government, 2023). Sport Canada has also invested 2.5 million dollars to host the Arctic Winter Games in Alberta in January of 2023 (Government, 2023). For most of the report, the majority of the steps being taken include investments, with little discussion of how Indigenous communities are involved in aspects of planning these events. They’re pushing for the participation aspect of the call to action but aren’t really implementing the second part of it with the planning of events. The only real mention of inclusion of Indigenous communities in planning is with the 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup (Government, 2023). Canadian Heritage and National Indigenous Organizations are working towards the discussion about the opportunity of hosting and its contribution to the beliefs and priorities of indigenous peoples (Government, 2023). This discussion is aimed at both national and local communities regarding this event (Government, 2023). Another step being taken is the Major Sport Event Coordination Group is looking to work with Indigenous organizations to determine the proper steps they can take to follow call to action 91 (Government, 2023). This collaboration is in effort to create a baseline that can be used for major sporting events to ensure consistency and respectfulness in following this call to action (Government, 2023).
References
Government of Canada. (2023). Sports and reconciliation. https://www.rcaanc-cirnac.gc.ca/eng/1524505883755/1557512006268
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